Milk collecting piece with a kink element for defining kinking of a milk tube

ABSTRACT

A milk collecting piece comprises a kink element having a bending edge which ensures reliable kinking and thus maintenance of the operating vacuum in milk tubes which are guided outwards in a direction oblique to the longitudinal axis. In one embodiment, the milk collecting piece comprises a connection surface provided with an opening into which an end portion of the milk tube is introduced, so that a reliable function is obtained due to the provision of the kink element, whereby due to the manner in which the milk tube is mounted on the collecting piece, a smaller amount of milk coating collects and deposits on transition areas. In a further embodiment, the bending edge of the kink element is positioned in such a manner that said edge efficiently prevents the milk tube from getting detached from connection elements which are guided outwards in an oblique manner, and ensures vacuum-tight kinking of the milk tube at the same time. Furthermore, a kink element is described which is to be fastened in a simple manner or with only slight constructional modifications to already existing milk collecting pieces.

The present invention relates to automatic milking systems used inagriculture, and particularly to a milk collecting piece comprising aplurality of connection portions for flexible milk tubes, wherein alongitudinal axis is defined in the milk collecting piece and milk tubesare mounted on the collecting piece in a direction oblique to thelongitudinal axis. Furthermore, the present invention relates to a kinkelement for a milk collecting piece.

When animals, for instance cows, are milked by machines, vacuum-operatedautomatic milking systems are predominantly used, wherein with the helpof teat cups mounted on the teats of the animals and connected by meansof milk tubes to a so-called milk collecting piece, the milk obtained bymilking is guided into a central container or into a central conduit. Inthis milking operation by way of a machine, it is important for thefarmer to achieve, on the one hand, a constantly high milk yield and tosatisfy, on the other hand, the strict hygienic requirements prescribedby the legislator to the milk producer. Consequently, it is importantthat the functionality of the automatic milking system provides for botha high degree of wellbeing for the animal to be milked, whereby a highyield is ensured, and a construction which allows for a rapid andefficient cleaning of the system.

An important component of the automatic milking system is the milkcollecting piece in which the milk obtained by milking from theindividual teats of the animal is collected and then transported into acentral conduit. The milk collecting piece is connected by means offlexible milk tubes to the corresponding teat cups and is suspendedduring milking, due to its own weight, underneath the udder of theanimal. Due to the tight mechanical coupling of the milk collectingpiece by means of the flexible milk tubes with the udder of the animal,the properties of the milk collecting piece as well as the correspondingconnection portions leading to the milk tubes have an effect on theoperational characteristics and thus the efficiency of the automaticmilking system. Especially during milking and due to the pressurevariations generated by the pulsed operation of the milking system,which are required for folding and unfolding the teat rubber in the teatcup, there is a corresponding movement of the milk collecting piece.Depending on the configuration of the milk collecting piece and the milktubes, a movement of the milk collecting piece can be used in a positiveway for stimulating the animal, or the milking operation gets impairedbecause certain movements are unpleasant for the animal and may thuslead to a premature contraction of the corresponding muscles and thus toa premature end of the milk flow.

A further critical situation arises during the milking operation when ateat cup falls off from the teat or when at the beginning or at the endof the milking operation the teat cups are to be attached to or removedfrom the teat. Since the milking vacuum is applied to each teat cup andsince this vacuum should remain as constant as possible, a removal or afalling off of the teat cup leads to a decline in the milking vacuum,which in turn may lead to a falling off of the remaining teat cups. Thisalso poses problems during removal of the teat cup because not all ofthe teat cups can normally be removed at the same time so that there isalways the risk that the teat cups that are still in the operativeposition will fall off and thus get soiled. Due to these problems, themilk collecting pieces are designed in many existing milking systemssuch that the flexible milk tubes which hang downwards due to the weightof the teat cup are kinked in a defined way and thus form an essentiallyvacuum-tight kink, so that the milking vacuum is hardly impaired on theremaining teat cups.

In a known milking system, the milk collecting piece is designed suchthat exit openings are provided on the top side of the milk collectingpiece for the milk tubes, which thereby leave the milk collecting pieceessentially in vertical direction, so that a maximum inner diameter isobtained during operation for the transportation of the milk obtained bymilking. Furthermore, a predetermined kink is provided on the milk tubespaced apart from the opening, the kink producing an increasedflexibility of the milk tube through a reduced wall thickness of thetube. Furthermore, a kink bracket is provided near the opening so thatin the suspended state of teat cups the predetermined kink of the milktube is positioned above the bracket edge, which ensures a definedkinking and substantially also a sealing of the milk tube. However, thevertical position of the milk tubes in the operative position has theeffect during the milking operation that small vertical and also lateralmovements of the milk collecting piece, which are e.g. generated by thepreviously mentioned pressure variations, have a direct effect on theanimal's teat. This has the additional effect that even slightpositional changes in the milk collecting piece on a specific teat, e.g.during “upward climbing” of the teat cup, have a direct effect on themilk collecting piece and thus indirectly also on the other teats. Thismay entail a significant negative effect on the animal's wellbeing andthus on the milk output. Furthermore, in said known milking system thekink brackets are mounted very close to the openings receiving the milktubes, so that during assembly or disassembly of the milk tubes muchtime and considerable efforts are spent. This has the effect that thewillingness to remove the milk tubes for a thorough cleaning processdeclines considerably.

In a further known milk collecting piece, connection elements are e.g.provided for the milk tubes, the connection elements being arranged inoblique fashion with respect to the longitudinal axis of the milkcollecting piece. It should here be noted that in the furtherdescription and in the claims the longitudinal axis of a milk collectingpiece is defined as an axis coinciding with the vertical if the milkcollecting piece is in the operative position and does not perform anymovement. The operative position is defined as the position in which themilk collecting piece is fastened by means of the milk tubes and theteat cups to the animal's udder and is suspended vertically downwardsdue to the dead weight of the whole milking equipment.

Together with correspondingly formed milk tubes, which may e.g. have aportion with a bellows-like structure, the connection elements mountedobliquely relative to the longitudinal axis achieve an attenuatingaction for lateral movements and also for movements along thelongitudinal axis. Said attenuating action is effected by a bending ofthe milk tubes which is enforced by the oblique arrangement of theconnection elements. Furthermore, the end of the connection elementsimultaneously serves as a kink edge, so that the inner diameter will bedeformed significantly when the milk tube, e.g. due to the teat cup'sown weight, is pulled downwards. However, it has been found that themilk tube is often not sealed in an absolute and reliable manner becausea pronounced predetermined kink is omitted in the tube so that theattenuating action of the tube bend is not impaired during the milkingoperation. Furthermore, it has turned out that upon kinking of the milktube said tube partly detaches from the bottom side of the connectionelement so that milk residues may collect at said place, therebyconstituting a potential risk for the hygienic state of the milk. Thisis particularly the case when during cleaning of the milking system themilk tube is in the unkinked state and the relevant portion on theconnection element is thus not cleaned.

Due to the above-illustrated situation, it is an object of the presentinvention to improve an automatic milking system such that the milkingoperation can be performed more efficiently, especially when the teatcups are attached or removed and the demands made on hygienic standardscan be satisfied more easily.

According to the invention said object is achieved by a milk collectingpiece for an automatic milking system comprising several connectionportions for flexible milk tubes and a longitudinal axis, wherein firstend portions of the milk tubes are mounted on the milk collecting pieceobliquely relative to the longitudinal axis, and wherein a kink elementis further provided with a bending edge spaced apart from the connectionportion, the bending edge defining a bending portion in the milk tube.

With the milk collecting piece of the invention the advantages of anoblique fastening of the flexible milk tubes to the milk collectingpiece can be combined with an exactly defined bending edge, so that theattenuating action of the flexible milk tubes that are curved upwardsduring the milking operation is maintained, and wherein on the otherhand the bending edge spaced apart from the connection portion exactlydefines a bending portion or kink portion in the milk tube, so that areliable vacuum-tight constriction of the milk tube is carried out. Incontrast to the known milk collecting piece with an oblique connectionelement in which the whole end of the connection element serves as abending portion and does thus not define an exact bending portion of themilk tube, the bending edge of the present invention permits a definedkinking, with the inner diameter being deformed such that upper andlower portions of the milk tube rest on one another or are at least soclosely spaced apart that they fully and tightly adhere to one anotherdue to the prevailing milking vacuum.

In a further embodiment, first end portions of the milk tubes that canbe mounted on the milk collecting piece enclose an angle of more than10° with the longitudinal axis in the direction defined by the operativeposition of the milk collecting piece.

With an angular range of more than 10°, i.e. when the end portions ofthe milk tubes enclose an angle of more than 10° with the upwardlydirected vertical when the milk collecting piece is in the operativeposition, an adequate curvature of the milk tube is achieved during themilking operation so that the attenuating or compensating effect of themilk tube on uncontrolled movements of the milk collecting piece isheightened. Preferably, the angle is 30° to 70°.

In a further embodiment, each bending edge is movable from a firstposition in which the bending edge is positioned to kink the milk tube,into a second position in which the bending edge is spaced apart fromthe milk tube such that the connection portion is accessible forassembly or disassembly of the milk tube.

With this configuration each bending edge can be moved from theoperative position into a second position in which the milk tubes can beassembled or disassembled rapidly. Hence, a user is enabled tothoroughly clean the milk tube and the connection portions of the milkcollecting piece in an easy and rapid manner.

In a further embodiment, the kink element is movable in such a way thatsome or all of the plurality of bending edges can be moved from thefirst position into the second position at the same time.

Said embodiment permits an even more rapid assembly or disassembly ofthe milk tubes for a thorough cleaning or for replacement of the milktubes.

In accordance with one embodiment, the kink element is rotatablyfastened to the milk collecting piece. This permits a simple mechanicalconstruction which makes it for instance possible to design the kinkelements as an annular element or an annular segment element, thebending edges being here movable from the first position into the secondposition by rotating the kink element.

In a preferred embodiment, the kink element can be removably fastened tothe milk collecting piece. The kink element can thereby be disassembledin an easy way, and no constructional measures or only slight ones formounting the kink element are needed on the milk collecting piece. Thisis particularly advantageous when the kink element must be provided onalready existing milk collecting pieces.

In a further embodiment, the kink element is displaceable from the firstposition into the second position in a vertical direction relative tothe operative position.

Said embodiment permits an easy mounting of the kink element; theadhesion may here be adequate, for instance, due to friction so that, ifneeded, only slight or even no constructional changes or measures arerequired on existing milk collecting pieces. The position of the kinkelement can then be changed rapidly, for instance by verticaldisplacement.

In a further embodiment, the kink element comprises several bending-edgeholding segments.

In a further embodiment, each bending-edge holding segment is movablymounted on the kink element.

According to this embodiment each bending edge may be movedindividually, for instance from the first position into the secondposition, so that a rapid access to an individual milk tube is possiblewithout affecting the mechanical construction of the remaining milktubes and the bending-edge holding segments.

In a further embodiment, each bending-edge holding segment comprises arotating and/or folding mechanism, or each bending-edge holding segmentis displaceable so that each bending-edge holding segment is movablefrom the first position into the second position. This embodimentpermits a simple mechanical configuration, the individual bending edgesbeing movable from the first position into the second position rapidlyand without any problems.

In a further embodiment, the kink element comprises a locking means withwhich each bending-edge holding segment can be locked in the firstposition. The locking means guarantees a reliable holding of the bendingedges in the first position so that the function of the bending edgeduring the milking operation and during removal and attachment of theteat cups is ensured.

Preferably, the locking means is configured to lock all bending-edgeholding segments in the first position at the same time.

In a further embodiment, the kink element comprises a deformableportion, so that the kink element can be fastened in a removable mannerto the milk collecting piece by deformation of the deformable portionand/or can be locked in the first position.

Due to the provision of a deformable portion, e.g. in the form of anelastic portion or a spring element which partly encompasses the kinkelement, the kink element can be fastened in a simple and reliablemanner to the milk collecting piece, e.g. in the first position.Furthermore, with this embodiment, the shape and thus the portion thatis in contact with the milk collecting piece can e.g. be changed, sothat a movement or a mounting of the kink element is possible in asimple way.

Preferably, a closing element is provided for detachably fastening thekink element.

With the closing element; two sub-portions, e.g. in the form ofsemi-annular segments, can e.g. be connected in a reliable manner,resulting in a mechanically simple construction that is operative in arapid and reliable manner.

In a further variant, at least two sub-portions are provided that aremovable relative to one another by means of a deformable portionconnecting the two sub-portions.

In a further embodiment, the deformable portion comprises an elasticmaterial and/or a hinge element and/or a folding mechanism. This leadsto a mechanically simple solution for fastening or moving the kinkelement. For instance, the kink element may be designed in the form of aclamp with a hinge.

In a further embodiment, the kink element comprises an elastic basicbody and bending-edge holding segments fastened thereto. The elasticbasic body may e.g. consist of an elastic ribbon, a plastic material, ametal, etc., the bending-edge holding segments being producible from thesame material or from a material differing from that of the basic body.When the same material is used, the bending-edge segments are preferablyproduced with an increased material thickness, so that the bending-edgesegments provide for a mechanically relatively rigid bending edge.

In a further embodiment, the elastic basic body is configured such thata change in length and/or shape and/or a torsional movement is possiblein the elastic basic body. Due to this property of the elastic basicbody the kink element can be fastened in an easy way to the milkcollecting piece, a transfer of one or several bending-edge holdingsegments being possible from the first position into the secondposition, e.g. by torsion in a sub-portion of the basic body.

In a further embodiment, the milk collecting piece comprises aconnection element in each connection portion, the bending edge beingpositioned in front of the connection element such that upon theapplication of a force directed downwards relative to the longitudinalaxis and the operative position onto the milk tube said tube is kinkedalong the bending edge without detaching from the connection element.

This embodiment prevents the above-mentioned wetting of the connectionelement on the bottom side of the connection element thanks to theinventive bending edge, so that the risk of bacterial contamination inthis portion is reduced considerably.

Advantageously, the bending edge has a distance from the connectionelement edge of about 1 mm to 15 mm. With such a distance the milk tubeis reliably prevented from detaching from the bottom side of theconnection element during kinking of the milk tube.

In a further variant, the kink element is made tubular and can bedetachably mounted in the connection portion on the milk tube. With thetubular configuration of the kink element said element can be mountedaround the connection portion, thereby permitting a rapid and reliableinstallation. Preferably, the bending edge is designed as a memberprojecting from the tubular portion with a straight edge.

Preferably, the kink element comprises two shaped members and a closingelement. The tubular kink element can thus be mounted rapidly andreliably.

In a further preferred embodiment, each connection portion comprises asurface with an opening for receiving the milk tube.

Hence, the milk collecting piece of said embodiment has no connectionelement, so that the risk of bacterial contamination that always existsin milk collecting pieces with connection elements is reducedconsiderably.

In a further embodiment, the milk collecting piece comprises a milktube, the milk tube having an incision at least in part around thecircumference of the milk tube on the first end portion to be introducedinto the opening.

This constructional configuration of the milk tube guarantees that themilk tube is reliably held in the opening because the opening edge is inengagement with the incision and prevents an axial movement of the milktube.

In a further variant, the outer diameter of the milk tube is greater onthe first end portion to be introduced into the opening, at least in thearea of the incision, than in the central portion of the milk tube.

The increased outer diameter results in an enhanced stability andservice life of the milk tube because small deformations with acorresponding wear take constantly place in the area of the opening,which wear is thus negligible due to the increased material thickness.

In a further embodiment, the kink element has a support surface facingthe milk tube.

Said support surface achieves an increased mechanical stability of theend portion of the milk tube. Furthermore, the support surface can beadapted to the radius of the milk tube, resulting in an improvedguidance of the milk tube when lateral forces are acting on the milktube.

Preferably, the milk tube has a bellows-like structure permitting acurvature or bend of the milk tube without a significant reduction ofthe inner diameter. The bellows-like structure provides for improvedbending properties together with an adequate stability of the milk tube,whereby the attenuating or compensating mechanical effect is promotedduring the milking operation. Furthermore, a targeted stimulatingmovement, which is e.g. created by a stimulation element, can betransmitted by the bellows-like structure to the teats. This issupported, on the one hand, by the improved curvature characteristics ofthe milk tube thanks to the bellows-like structure and, on the otherhand, by the properties of the bellows-like structure to display acertain movability in axial direction.

Advantageously, the bending edge is positioned such that in the case ofa force which is directed downwards with respect to the operativeposition and acts on the milk tube, the bending edge is in contact withthe milk tube at the transition from the unstructured portion to thebellows-like portion or in the bellows-like portion.

It is thereby ensured that a portion of the milk tube of maximumflexibility is involved in the kinking of the milk tube.

According to a further aspect of the invention, a kink element isprovided for use with a milk collecting piece having an obliquelyarranged connection portion, the kink element comprising a kink segmentwith a bending edge and being configured to be mountable on the milkcollecting piece.

It is possible by providing a mountable kink element to equip alreadyexisting milk collecting pieces with obliquely arranged connectionportions in a simple way so that even in the case of old systems theabove-described drawbacks can be avoided.

Advantageously, the kink element is removably mounted on the milkcollecting piece.

Hence, since a permanent connection is not needed between the milkcollecting piece and the kink element, the kink element can be replacedany time or used on other milk collecting pieces. Moreover, theremovable assembly of the kink element allows for a change in theposition of the kink element in such a way that a rapid assembly ordisassembly of the milk tubes is possible and/or the kink element can beremoved altogether during assembly or disassembly of the milk tubes.

As for the further technical designs of the kink element, the criteriaalready outlined above as well as the associated advantages areapplicable.

Further embodiments according to the invention as well as advantages andobjects of the invention are further defined in the patent claims andbecome also apparent from the following detailed description. In theaccompanying drawings,

FIG. 1 shows a schematic side view of an embodiment of a milk collectingpiece according to the invention;

FIG. 2 the milk collecting piece of FIG. 1 in two functional positions;

FIG. 3 a schematic side view of the inner portion of a milk collectingpiece according to the invention, the kink element being not plotted;

FIG. 4 a schematic top view on the milk collecting piece of FIG. 6;

FIG. 5 a schematic view of a milk tube which can preferably be used incombination with the milk collecting piece shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7;

FIGS. 6 a, 6 b and 6 c a schematic side view of variations of a furtherembodiment according to the invention, a milk collecting piece beingused with obliquely mounted connection elements; and

FIGS. 7 a and 7 b a schematic view of a kink element according to theinvention, the element being e.g. usable in combination with a milkcollecting piece with oblique connection portions, FIG. 7 b showing thekink element additionally provided with a clamping device.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail.

FIG. 1 schematically shows a milk collecting piece 100, illustratingonly the portions of relevance to the invention, i.e. the upper part ofthe milk collecting piece. The milk collecting piece 100 comprises acontainer body 101 with fluid or air supply elements 102 providedthereon, and with connection portions 103, each having a flexible milktube 104 mounted thereon. Furthermore, the figure shows a longitudinalaxis 105 the direction of which also coincides with the operativeposition of the milk collecting piece 100 when the milk collecting pieceis suspended without motion, e.g. held by the milk tubes 104, underneaththe udder of an animal to be milked,. Said vertical direction is alsodesignated in the following as the operative position. Absolutedirectional information found in the description always refers to saidoperative position.

Furthermore, the milk collecting piece 100 has provided thereon a kinkelement 106 which comprises a basic body 107 and a plurality ofbending-edge holding segments 108. Each bending-edge holding segment 108comprises a bending edge 109 and a support surface 110 in theillustrated embodiment. Optionally, a recess 161 may be provided in thesupport surface 110 to receive a possibly existing thickened portion ofthe milk tube 104 therein. In the present embodiment, the basic body 107and the bending-edge holding segments 108 are made from a uniformmaterial, e.g. plastics, metal, etc., but the bending-edge holdingsegments and the basic body 107 may also be made from differentmaterials. To be more specific, the bending-edge holding segment 108 maye.g. consist more or less of a frame. The milk tubes 104 which have aportion of a bellows-like structure 111 in the illustrated embodimentare fastened with an end portion to the connection portions 103 suchthat the milk tubes 104 extend on the connection portion 103 in adirection oblique to the longitudinal axis 105. A typical angular rangeis between 10° and 70°.

With reference to FIG. 2, the function of the milk collecting pieceaccording to the invention will now be described. FIG. 2 shows twotypical operative states of the milk collecting piece 100, with one teatcup 112 being oriented upwards and typically fastened to an animal'steat, and a further teat cup 112 being suspended downwards almostvertically. This situation arises for instance when the milking harnessis removed or attached, the individual teat cups being attached orremoved in successive order while the remaining teat cups are hangingdownwards due to their own weight. In this situation the milk tube 104is deformed by means of the bending edge 109 near the bending edge 109so that the inner sides adhere to one another or are at leastspaced-apart at a very close distance, as is shown by the broken line113. Even if the interior of the milk tube 104 is not entirely closed, acomplete contraction takes place due to the prevailing milking vacuum,so that a reliable maintenance of the operating vacuum in the interiorof the container element 101 is ensured. Advantageously, the supportsurface 110 substantially prevents a mechanical deformation of the endportion of the milk tube 104. As a consequence, only a minimal relativemovement takes place between the connection portion 103 and the endportion of the milk tube 104, so that the material fatigue of the milktube 104 in this portion is negligibly low. In the position in which theleft teat cup 112 is shown, the oblique exit of the milk tube out of theconnection portion 103 leads to a curvature in the milk tube 104 thatcreates a mechanically attenuating effect, so that the individual teatcups 112 are decoupled more strongly in mechanical terms than would bethe case if use were made of milk tubes vertically exiting upwards, ashas been described at the outset. Moreover, the portion with thebellows-like structure 111 permits a certain axial flexibility that alsocompensates for an undesired relative movement between the individualteat cups and the milk collecting piece 100.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the kink element 106 maypreferably be designed such that the kink holding segments 108 aremovable from a first position, which is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, wherethe bending edge 109 is positioned such that the milk tube 104 is kinkedin a definite way, into a second position in which one or several of thekink holding segments 108 are spaced apart from the milk tube 104 suchthat unhindered access to the connection portion 103 is possible. In oneembodiment, the kink element 106 is made rotatable about thelongitudinal axis 105, so that all of the kink holding segments 108 canbe transferred from the first position into the second position at thesame time. Alternatively, the individual kink holding segments maycomprise a mechanism which permits movement of said segmentsindividually from the first position into the second position. Forinstance, each kink holding segment 108 may comprise a snap typemechanism, a rotating mechanism, or the like, so that each kink holdingsegment 108 is e.g. movable by rotation or by folding down from thefirst position into the second position. Furthermore, the kink holdingsegments may be designed such that said segments are displaceable inaxial direction, so that these can be transferred from the firstposition into the second position.

In a further embodiment, the basic body 107 of the kink element 106 maybe made in part or entirely from an elastic material; for instance, thebasic body 107 may be configured in the form of a stretchable ribbon, adeformable metal clip which can enclose the milk collecting piece 100 inpart, so that e.g. the elastic metal clip can be opened easily by beingslightly bent apart, whereby the bending-edge holding segments 108mounted on the clip can be changed in their position. In the embodimentin which the basic body 107 consists of an elastic ribbon, thebending-edge holding segments 108 can be folded downwards easily bystretching and twisting the holding ribbon, which permits free access tothe connection portions 103.

FIGS. 3, 4 and 5 show further details of the embodiments illustrated inFIGS. 1 and 2.

FIG. 3 is a schematic lateral inner view of the milk collecting piece100. The connection portion 103 comprises a surface 120, the normal tothe surface enclosing an angle advantageously ranging from 10° to 90°with the longitudinal axis 105. In the illustrated embodiment; saidangle preferably ranges from 30° to 60°. It should be noted that anglealways means the smaller angle between the longitudinal axis 105 and theconnection portion 103, so that the milk tube 104 in the operativeposition exits from the milk collecting piece 100 with an upwardlyoriented inclination. The surface 120 comprises an opening 121 intowhich the end portion of the milk tube is introduced.

FIG. 5 schematically shows a preferred embodiment of the milk tube 104,where an incision 124 is provided on an end portion 120. Furthermore,the outer diameter 126 of the end portion 123 in the area of theincision 124 is greater than an outer diameter 125 in the centralportion of the milk tube 104.

FIG. 3 further shows that the edge of the opening 120 is in engagementwith the incision 124, so that the milk tube 104 is reliably held inposition when axial forces that are typical during the milking operationare acting on the milk tube 104. On the other hand, the milk tube 104can be removed easily and rapidly, if necessary.

FIG. 4 is a top view on the milk collecting piece 100, the portion withthe enlarged outer diameter 126 being clearly visible.

During operation there is hardly any relative movement between the milkcollecting piece 100 and the milk tube 104 in the area of the surface120 and the opening 121 due to the kink element 106 with thecorresponding support surface 110 (cf. FIGS. 1 and 2), so that a longservice life is achieved for the milk tube 104, especially when the areaon the incision has the increased outer diameter 126. Furthermore, sincethere is either no or only a slight deformation of the milk tube 104 inthe area of the surface 120, there are hardly any places at which milkcould deposit for a prolonged period of time and thereby producepathogenic bacteria, the reason for this being that the milk tube 104cannot detach from the milk collecting piece. The necessary hygienicstandards can thus be observed much more easily.

FIGS. 6 a, 6 b and 6 c schematically show further embodiments of a milkcollecting piece of the invention.

In FIGS. 6 a to 6 c, parts that are similar or identical to those shownin FIGS. 1 to 5 are marked with the same reference numerals, but with aleading “6” instead of the leading “1”. The description of identical orsimilar parts is therefore omitted.

In FIG. 6 a, the milk collecting piece 600 is provided in the connectionportion 603 with a connection element 630 which is obliquely arrangedrelative to the longitudinal axis 605. The kink element 606 is herepositioned such that the bending edge 609 is spaced apart from theconnection element 630 in the direction in which the connection element630 extends, so that the milk tube 604 is kinked on the bending edge 609without the milk tube 604 detaching or lifting from a lower portion 631of the connection element 630, as is the case with a conventional milkcollecting piece. Preferably, the distance between the connectionelement 630 and the bending edge 609 is 1 mm to 15 mm.

Preferably, the kink element 606 is configured such that said element isremovably mounted on the milk collecting piece 600. It is particularlyadvantageous that all constructional measures for fastening the kinkelement 606 are taken on the kink element, so that no structuralmeasures have to be taken on the milk collecting piece 600 for fasteningpurposes. As a result, the kink element 606 can also be used withconventional milk collecting pieces. Of course, the kink element 606 and106, respectively, may be permanently connected to a part of the milkcollecting piece 600 in this embodiment and also in all of the otherembodiments that have so far been mentioned, or it may be an integralcomponent of the milk collecting piece 600. As for the configuration ofthe kink element 606, the same criteria as have already been outlined inconnection with FIGS. 1 to 5, are applicable. In the case of the kinkelement 606, a support surface can be omitted because the mechanicalstability of the end portion of the milk tube 604 is ensured by theconnection element 630.

FIG. 6 b shows a variation of the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 6 a, aholding portion 661 being provided that forms a support surface 610 onwhich the milk tube 604 rests. Furthermore, a recess 660 may be providedfor receiving a thickened portion of the milk tube 604. The supportsurface 610 reliably prevents the formation of a gap in the portion 631during movement of the milk tube 604, so that essentially no milkresidues can deposit there.

FIG. 6 c shows a further variant of the embodiment illustrated in FIGS.6 a and 6 b, a clamping device 662 being here provided in the rearportion of the connection element. The clamping device 662 may bedesigned as an annular element which encloses the milk tube 604 and thusthe connection element 630 either in part or entirely. Furthermore, theclamping device 662 may be designed as a holding element with a bracketor a bracket-like structure, so that at least the milk tube 604 ispressed onto the connection element 630 at a place at the side oppositeto the bending edge 609. The clamping device 662 may be fastened to thecollecting piece 600 or to the kink element 606. The clamping device 662may comprise a corresponding closing mechanism, so that the clampingdevice can be locked in the operative position.

FIG. 7 a schematically shows a kink element 706 of the invention thatcomprises a basic body 707 and bending-edge holding segments 708 with acorresponding bending edge 709. Furthermore, a closing element 740 isprovided. In this embodiment, the basic body 707 is made from a materialthat is elastic at least in part, so that the annular basic body 707 canbe opened, i.e. pressed apart, by operating or opening the closingelement 740. Advantageously, the elasticity of the basic body 707 is sopronounced that the kink element 706 can be slid thereonto from thebottom or top (when all of the connection tubes on the milk collectingpiece have been removed) or can be mounted from the side on conditionthat the basic body 707 can be opened to a sufficiently wide degree.Thanks to the closing element 740, the kink element 706 can be mountedin a reliable manner on a milk collecting piece on the one hand, and thebending edges 709 can be moved by opening the closing element 740 and byrotating the basic body 707 from a first position into a second positionon the other hand. In a further embodiment the kink element 706 maycomprise a hinge element so that two or more portions are created on thebasic body 707, said portions being movable relative to one another. Aparticularly simple embodiment is obtained if the basic body consistsessentially of an elastic ribbon to which the bending-edge holdingsegments 708 are fastened.

The bending-edge holding segments 708 may here be configured such thatthese have to be fastened to the basic body 707 after the basic body 707has been fastened or attached to a milk collecting piece. To this endthe bending-edge holding segments 708 may comprise an appropriatefastening mechanism, for instance an incision, a clip type closure, apress contact with a correspondingly mating point on the basic body 707,etc. Due to the elasticity of the basic body 707 each of the individualbending-edge holding segments 708 can then be moved by twisting, i.e. bytorsional movement of the basic body 707, from a first position into asecond position. For instance, a bending-edge holding segment 708 caneasily be pulled away from the milk collecting piece to some extent andthen be folded downwards. When corresponding fastening means areprovided, the bending-edge holding element 708 can be disassembledrapidly and easily, so that corresponding connection portions of themilk collecting piece are accessible for assembling or disassembling themilk tubes. Furthermore, a locking means may be provided, for instancein the form of a ring or a ribbon, etc., which is laid around allbending-edge holding segments 708, so that an adequate mechanicalstability is ensured in the first position. Depending on the type of themilk collecting piece with which the kink element 706 is to be used, thebending-edge holding segments 708 may comprise a support surface. As hasalready been explained in connection with FIGS. 1 and 2, a supportsurface is of advantage to a milk collecting piece with an inclined exitsurface without a connection element because a high stability of themilk tube is thereby achieved in the connection portion. Advantageously,the support surface can partly imitate the radius of the milk tube,resulting in a certain guidance of the milk tube by the support surface.Of course, the basic body can be made fully or in part from inelasticmaterials. For instance, the basic body 707 may be any desired frameelement whose inner portion is adapted to the shape of the milkcollecting piece.

FIG. 7 b shows the kink element of FIG. 7 a with additional clampingdevices 762 which in this example are designed as brackets fastened tothe bending-edge holding segments 708. This particularly simpleconstruction makes it possible to move the clamping device 762 also intothe operative position by positioning, e.g. rotating, the kink element.However, the same standards are applicable to this embodiment withrespect to the clamping device 762 as with respect to the clampingdevice 662 of FIG. 6 c. This means that the clamping device may e.g. beconfigured as an annular element with a corresponding closure, etc.

During operation it is substantially ensured by the clamping devices 662and 762 that a gap does not form between a connection element and themilk tube both in the position illustrated in FIG. 2 (position duringremoval of the milking harness) of the right teat cup 112 and in theposition (position during milking) of the left teat cup 112. Thisconsiderably reduces the amount of milk residues collecting in the areabetween the milk tube and connection element or prevents such acollection altogether, resulting in increased hygienic standards.

Furthermore, it should be noted that the kink elements as illustrated inthe figures are shown for use with milk collecting pieces having anessentially round cross-section.

The outer shape of the milk collecting pieces, however, is of noimportance to the present invention, and the shape of the kink elementcan be adapted in an easy way to any desired outer shapes of the milkcollecting piece. Furthermore, the remarks made in connection with thekink elements 106 and 606 with respect to FIGS. 1 to 6 apply by analogyto the kink element 706. Especially the selection of the materials andthe outer shape, as well as the exact shape of the bending-edge holdingsegments must be considered to be not restricted by the detaileddescription. Furthermore, any suitable fastening means may be used formounting the kink element on the milk collecting piece.

1-46. (canceled)
 47. A milk collecting piece for an automatic milkingsystem, comprising: a plurality of connection portions configured toconnect to flexible milk tubes and having a longitudinal axis, first endportions of the milk tubes fastenable to the milk collecting piece in adirection oblique to the longitudinal axis; a kink element comprising abending edge spaced apart from the connection portion, said bending edgedefining a bending portion in the flexible milk tube when fastened tothe milk collecting piece, each bending edge being configured to bemovable from a first position in which the bending edge is positioned tokink the milk tube, into a second position in which the bending edge isspaced apart from the milk tube, the bending edge being in the secondposition provides access to said connection portion for assembling ordisassembling the milk tube.
 48. The milk collecting piece according toclaim 47, wherein the first end portions of the milk tubes in thefastened state enclose an angle of 10° or more with the longitudinalaxis if said axis is oriented in a direction defined by an operativeposition of the milk collecting piece.
 49. The milk collecting pieceaccording to claim 47, wherein the kink element is movable so that someor all of the plurality of bending edges are simultaneously movable fromthe first position into the second position.
 50. The milk collectingpiece according to claim 49, wherein the kink element is rotatablyfastened to the milk collecting piece.
 51. The milk collecting pieceaccording to claim 47, wherein the kink element is removably fastened tothe milk collecting piece.
 52. The milk collecting piece according toclaim 47, wherein the kink element is displaceable from the firstposition into the second position in vertical direction with respect toan operative position.
 53. The milk collecting piece according to claim47, wherein the kink element comprises a plurality of bending-edgeholding segments.
 54. The milk collecting piece according to claim 53,wherein each bending-edge holding segment is movably mounted on the kinkelement.
 55. The milk collecting piece according to claim 54, whereineach bending-edge holding segment comprises at least one of a rotatingmechanism, a folding mechanism and a configuration to allow displacementof the bending-edge holding segment so as to be movable from the firstposition into the second position.
 56. The milk collecting pieceaccording to claim 53, wherein the kink element comprises a lockingmeans with which each bending-edge holding segment can be locked in thefirst position.
 57. The milk collecting piece according to claim 56,wherein the locking means is configured to lock all of the bending-edgeholding segments in the first position at the same time.
 58. The milkcollecting piece according to claim 47, wherein the kink elementcomprises a deformable area configured so that the kink element can beremovably fastened to the milk collecting piece by deformation of thedeformable portion and/or can be locked in the first position.
 59. Themilk collecting piece according to claim 58, wherein the deformableportion comprises an elastic material.
 60. The milk collecting pieceaccording to claim 47, wherein the kink element comprises at least twosub-portions that are movable relative to one another.
 61. The milkcollecting piece according to claim 60, the at least two sub-portionsare configured to be connectable by a closing element.
 62. The milkcollecting piece according to claim 60, wherein the at least twosub-portions are movable relative to one another by means of adeformable portion connecting the two sub-portions.
 63. The milkcollecting piece according to claim 62, wherein the deformable portioncomprises at least one of an elastic material, a hinge element and afolding mechanism.
 64. The milk collecting piece according to claim 47,wherein the kink element comprises an elastic basic body andbending-edge segments fastened thereto.
 65. The milk collecting pieceaccording to claim 64, wherein the elastic basic body is configured toallow a change in at least one of length, shape and a torsional movementin the elastic basic body.
 66. The milk collecting piece according toclaim 47, wherein the milk collecting piece comprises a connectionelement in each connection portion, the bending edge being positioned infront of the connection element such that upon a force exerted on themilk tube, which is directed downwards relative to the longitudinal axisand the operative position, said milk tube is kinked along the bendingedge without detaching from the connection element.
 67. The milkcollecting piece according to claim 66, wherein the bending edge has adistance of about 1 mm to 15 mm relative to the connection element andin axial direction.
 68. The milk collecting piece according to claim 47,wherein each connection portion has a surface with an opening forreceiving the milk tube.
 69. The milk collecting piece according toclaim 68, wherein the milk collecting piece comprises a milk tube, themilk tube having an incision at least in part around the circumferenceof the milk tube on the first end portion to be introduced into theopening.
 70. The milk collecting piece according to claim 69, wherein anouter diameter of the milk tube on the first end portion to beintroduced into the opening is greater at least in the area of theincision than in a central area of the milk tube.
 71. The milkcollecting piece according to claim 47, wherein the kink elementcomprises a support surface facing the milk tube.
 72. The milkcollecting piece according to claim 69, wherein the milk tube has abellows-like structure.
 73. The milk collecting piece according to claim72, wherein the milk tube comprises an unstructured portion between theend portion introduced into the opening and the bellows-like structureso that upon occurrence of a bending load the curvature of the milk tubeis created essentially from the bellows-like structure onwards.
 74. Themilk collecting piece according to claim 73, wherein the bending edge ispositioned such that upon a force directed downwards with respect to theoperative position and acting on the milk tube, the bending edge is incontact with the milk tube at at least one of the transition from thestructured portion to the bellows-like portion and in the bellows-likeportion.
 75. The milk collecting piece according to claim 47, furthercomprising a clamping device configured to fixedly clamp the milk tubein the fastened state in flow direction behind the bending edge at leastat the side opposite to the bending edge.
 76. The milk collecting pieceaccording to claim 75, wherein the milk collecting piece comprises aconnection element in the connection portion, and the clamping device isconfigured to essentially prevent the formation of a gap between theconnection element and the milk tube in the fastened state duringoperation.
 77. The milk collecting piece according to claim 75, whereinthe clamping device is fastened to the kink element and configured toenclose the milk tube in the fastened state at least in part.
 78. A kinkelement for use with a milk collecting piece with an obliquely arrangedconnection portion, the kink element comprising: a kink segmentincluding a bending edge and being configured to be mountable on themilk collecting piece, the kink element being further configured to bemovable in the mounted state from a first position in which the bendingedge is positioned to kink the milk tube, into a second position inwhich the bending edge is spaced apart from the milk tube such that theconnection portion is accessible for assembling and disassembling themilk tube.
 79. The kink element according to claim 78, wherein the kinkelement is removably mountable on the milk collecting piece.
 80. Thekink element according to claim 78, wherein the kink element comprises abasic body which has the kink segment fastened thereto.
 81. The kinkelement according to claim 80, wherein the kink segment is movablyfastened to the basic body.
 82. The kink element according to claim 78,wherein a plurality of kink segments are provided on the basic body. 83.The kink element according to claim 78, wherein the kink segment ismovable from a first position into a second position.
 84. The kinkelement according to claim 83, wherein the kink segment is movable bydisplacement from the first position into the second position by meansof at least one of a rotating, folding mechanism and an inherentelasticity of the basic body.
 85. The kink element according to claim78, wherein the basic body comprises a closing mechanism for fasteningthe basic body to the milk collecting piece.
 86. The kink elementaccording to claim 85, wherein comprises at least one of an elasticportion and a hinge element.
 87. The kink element according to claim 78,wherein a plurality of kink segments are provided and the basic body isso elastic that said segments can be fastened by inherent elasticity tothe milk collecting piece.
 88. The kink element according to claim 78,wherein the basic body comprises one of a ring segment-like member andan annular portion.
 89. The kink element according to claim 78, furthercomprising a clamping device configured to fixedly clamp a milk tube ata side opposite to the bending edges.